Doctors in Secondary Schools Program – GP Training

Initial training for Doctors in Secondary Schools Program successfully delivered

Assoc Prof Lena Sanci is the expert advisor to the Victorian Government Doctors in Secondary Schools Program, and on 4-5 May facilitated the initial training workshop for GPs, nurses and school staff participating in the Program. The workshop was opened by David Howes, Assistant Deputy Secretary, Early Childhood and School Education Group, Department of Education and Training.

The interactive training modules presented over the two days were designed to provide a culturally safe, trauma informed means of supporting youth-friendly practice, but additionally informed GPs about the ethical and medico-legal aspects of the Program. Co-facilitators of the training were Prof Helen Cahill and Catherine Smith from Melbourne Graduate School of Education, and Dr Phyllis Lau from the Department of General Practice. Eddie Moore from Victorian Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation Inc. and Drs Bianca Forrester and Natasha Rabbidge also made important contributions to the content and delivery of the material. The involvement of the Department of Education and Training (DET), including Child Safety and Legal teams, was central in addressing the more complex issues associated with the Program.

Key elements of the training were the involvement of Hume Central Secondary College students in an interactive clinical workshop, and a forum with three young people from diverse backgrounds - Mill O’Sullivan from Minus 18, Masooma Saberi from the Centre for Multicultural Youth and Nina Fitzgerald, an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander woman from the Kakadu region of the Northern Territory and Thursday Island. Other supportive participants from Primary Health Networks and DET Regional Offices were also present.The training was well received by the attendees, who are part of the first 20 schools involved in the government initiative to deliver primary care services in 100 Victorian government secondary schools.For more information about the program, click here.